A newcomer from Sweden

[currenthill]

Hi!

I just arrived at this forum. I’m a knifemaker from Sweden and have lately gotten more and more interested in really sharp edges. I’ve been using my VS/cooled belt grinders for sharpening, along with a washboard hand sanding system.

But I’d like to get a more exact angle so I just bought a Wicked Edge Field and Sport Pro with two extra glass plate handles for 3M lapping film.

I’ve only tried it on a couple of blades, but even though my both me and my stones are fresh at this I’m impressed at my first couple of edges. Really nice and easy to get it real sharp. I sharpened a drop point at 15 DPS. I started it by free hand at the 2×72 with AO120/AO220 grit and then in the WE up to 1000 diamond and stropped it at the same angle with 0,30 micron film.  Amazingly sharp.

I have a couple of laser gyutos in the works that’s going to be interesting to sharpen, indeed.

Best regards from Sweden

Stefan

2 users thanked author for this post.

sksharp, M1rrorEdge

[Mark76]

Welcome to the forum, Currenthill! Great you like your WEPS! My favorite kitchen knife is actually from Sweden (Robin Dalman).

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Molecule Polishing: my blog about sharpening with the Wicked Edge

3 users thanked author for this post.

sksharp, currenthill, M1rrorEdge

[M1rrorEdge]

Welcome to the forum.  I know you will find many people actively monitoring this forum who are willing to help answer any questions you may have!.  Most of us, including myself, learn something new every week.  You can also find many great old posts and threads with tremendous information. Enjoy!

Eddie Kinlen
M1rror Edge Sharpening Service, LLC
+1(682)777-1622

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sksharp, currenthill

[currenthill]

Thanks!

I’m going through the forum, from top to bottom. 

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sksharp

[sksharp]

Welcome currenthill. There is a lot of good info on here and most of these guys are very helpful. They have taught me a lot and gave even more to think about.

Good luck

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currenthill

[currenthill]

 

This if fun.

I just used my new WEPS to sharpen one of my new Gyutos (O1/63 HRC), at 11 DPS, 200-1000 + stropping with 3M film.

It’s a learning curve, as with everything else. Today I learned to be more careful until muscle memory picks up the motions. I managed to get a couple of scratches when not paying enough attention to my strokes. Or maybe it’s best to protect the blade with tape?

I’m also trying to learn proper alignment of the blade in the fixture. Especially for the long blades, I initially took of a little to much at the tip. And I’m doing some experimentation with what kind of stroke I should use. I didn’t quite get the finish I wanted, I may have to be more meticulous at every grit. Just like when hand rubbing my blades.

But it’s sharp, really sharp. Managed to cut a free hanging hair.

I think I’m going to try a microbevel at 13 DPS on the next one, to attain better edge retention.

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M1rrorEdge

[Marc H]

It’ll get better when your stones break in. They will give you a coarser finish when they’re new than after they have worn some. I also highly recommend you get the “Wicked Edge Safety Shield” https://www.wickededgeusa.com/product/wicked-edge-safety-shield-2-pack/

Welcome,

Marc

Marc
(MarcH's Rack-Its)

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currenthill

[currenthill]

Thank you! I forgot about the break in time and courseness. I will also take a look at the mentioned safety shield.

 

Wishing you a Happy Easter!

[Mark76]

Hey Currenthill, if you’re looking for some info about finding the “sweet spot”, here is some: https://www.wickededgeusa.com/finding-the-sweet-spot-positioning-your-knife-from-front-to-back/ . I also wrote a blog post about it: https://moleculepolishing.wordpress.com/2013/03/12/angle-changes-on-the-wicked-edge-revised/#more-703

And MarcH is completely right about the breaking in of the stones. Success!

Molecule Polishing: my blog about sharpening with the Wicked Edge

1 user thanked author for this post.

currenthill

[currenthill]

Mark76 wrote:

Hey Currenthill, if you’re looking for some info about finding the “sweet spot”, here is some: https://www.wickededgeusa.com/finding-the-sweet-spot-positioning-your-knife-from-front-to-back/ . I also wrote a blog post about it: https://moleculepolishing.wordpress.com/2013/03/12/angle-changes-on-the-wicked-edge-revised/#more-703 And MarcH is completely right about the breaking in of the stones. Success!

Thanks for the link to your blog, very informative.

[Mark76]

Yeah, this site doesn’t support signatures. I made a macro to insert signatures in posts for sites that don’t, but I find I hardly use it. Ok, just for once :
———————————–
My blogs:
– Molecule polishing: about sharpening with the Wicked Edge
– Japanese knife reviews: about Japanese kitchen knives

Molecule Polishing: my blog about sharpening with the Wicked Edge

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sksharp

[Organic]

currenthill wrote:

This if fun. I just used my new WEPS to sharpen one of my new Gyutos (O1/63 HRC), at 11 DPS, 200-1000 + stropping with 3M film. It’s a learning curve, as with everything else. Today I learned to be more careful until muscle memory picks up the motions. I managed to get a couple of scratches when not paying enough attention to my strokes. Or maybe it’s best to protect the blade with tape? I’m also trying to learn proper alignment of the blade in the fixture. Especially for the long blades, I initially took of a little to much at the tip. And I’m doing some experimentation with what kind of stroke I should use. I didn’t quite get the finish I wanted, I may have to be more meticulous at every grit. Just like when hand rubbing my blades. But it’s sharp, really sharp. Managed to cut a free hanging hair. I think I’m going to try a microbevel at 13 DPS on the next one, to attain better edge retention.

I was also a little bit disappointed in the finish I has achieving on the first few knives. I had spent hours watching youtube videos of people getting mirrored edges with their WE sharpeners and the best I could do was a hazy satin finish. The stones really did break with some use. I noticed that the finish improved dramatically on the 7th knife that I sharpened.

[currenthill]

That’s encouraging!

By the way, I just sliced a rather big amount of tomatoes, onions, garlic, cucumbers and other healthy candy. It was a real treat with the WEPS sharpened gyuto. The effortless smoothness when slicing right through the delicate skin of the tomatoes is absolutely soul cleansing. 

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Organic, Mark76

[currenthill]

A quick follow-up after sharpening many blades. I’m pretty much getting the results I want, but I still managed to get a couple of rather large scratches or scuff marks on my blades. I’m therefore taping them before sharpening now, but sometimes, for a quick touch up it would be nice to avoid the excessive taping procedure. Do you guys have any idea what I’m doing wrong to end up with these marks.

I didn’t have any detail pictures of what I mean, but on this one there’s one clearly visible.

I also made a holder for my stones, nothing fancy, but it suit my needs just fine.

 

 

 

 

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dulledge, Mark76

[Marc H]

This may or may not be the culprit of your scratches but it has been the cause of mine…I have found that the towel, rag or paper towel I am using to wipe off the knife as I am sharpening it may trap tiny metal filings.  As I wipe down the knife it would impart little scratches to the knife blade. So change the towel or fold it often, to expose a new clean side or surface to wipe the blade to help prevent that from happening.  Also if you tape your blade to protect it, the removed metal can fall and collect where the edge of the tape meets the blade, then as you’re wiping the blade during the sharpening process, the towel grabs this accumulation of tiny metal particles and pulls it across the blade sometimes scratching it. If there is trapped metal when you remove the tape after sharpening you can actually scratch the blade as you are handling the knife to remove this tape.  I suggest you wipe with clean soft towel, wipe very gently and wipe very often.

Marc
(MarcH's Rack-Its)

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currenthill, sksharp

[Author]

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